Chris Young

Published:08:25Wednesday 11 February 2015

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GUS POYET admits Sunderland gave travel-sick QPR a lift with their abject start to last night’s defeat.

Sunderland barely completed a pass in the opening half-hour of a golden chance to create some breathing space with the relegation zone, and it handed the initiative to a QPR side who hadn’t even registered a point on the road this season.

Leroy Fer duly handed QPR the advantage in that period and despite Jermain Defoe and Connor Wickham both going desperately close to a leveller, Bobby Zamora doubled the lead on the stroke of half-time.

“You cannot start like that at home in such an important game and give the opposition what they didn’t need, a lift,” admitted Poyet.

“After that, the game was there.

“Our two chances in the first half were better chances than the two that QPR scored – which is credit to them because it was a great header and a great finish from Bobby.

“But if you score at 1-1, the game is different because of the situation they have been in and because of us probably getting better.

“But we didn’t score, then they scored just before half-time, then it’s difficult.

“The players in the second half, they tried. Nobody hid, everybody was there.”

However, Poyet insisted his dejection at the 2-0 defeat was limited to those opening exchanges, with Sunderland at least producing a big effort to get back into the game and QPR keeper Rob Green producing several smart saves.

Poyet added: “I am disappointed because of the first 20 minutes. The rest is football, it’s a consequence.

“People who understand football and play and have been on the pitch know that when you start a game that badly and then you go 1-0 behind, there is something you need to do about it.

“If you score, or the goalkeeper of the opposition team is not the man of the match, then you have got a better chance.

“But today, 20 bad minutes, a great goal from Bobby Zamora right on half-time, two great misses in the first half for us, and everything we threw in the second half with the opposition goalkeeper being outstanding, there’s only one result, you are going to lose the game.”

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